The Story of a Hunter
by iShouldBeaDisneyPrincess
Summary: My name is Annie. I am a Hunter of Artemis. I have given my vow of chastity, but there was someone before. His name was Jon. This is the story of how I became a Hunter.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! So this starts during World War II era and it takes place in America. Picture a white-picket fence town where everyone knows each other. I hope you like! BTDubs I don't own Percy Jackson or any characters from said series. They belong to Rick Riordan.**

He was fifteen and I was only twelve. He was tall and handsome, and he had a pair of beautiful green eyes. It would be a bit of an understatement to say I had a crush on him.

The only bad thing about Jon was the scandal involving his birth. His parents never got married which, in my town at least, was unheard of. His mother and father met one night, and then his father was gone. It was like he had disappeared in the night. Nine months later, Jon was born.

Of course I had seen Jon before. We lived in the same one-stoplight town. We never actually talked until the town held its annual archery competition one summer day in 1940.

I hate archery. Personally, I think it's the worst possible sport in the world. Why people would do it for fun is beyond me. However, my mother was in charge of the fundraising committee so I was required to be there and to participate. I tried to convince my mom not to give me a bow and arrow, but she wouldn't have any of it.

"You are participating whether you like it or not, young lady. I refuse to allow you to ruin our family's reputation by not being here."

"But, mama, I will be here! I just won't be part of the competition."

"Don't start trying to talk your way out of this. I am putting my foot down."

"But I'm a terrible shot! I'm just going to end up hurting someone!"

"I don't care if you shoot the mayor! You are shooting no matter what!" My mother's a gem, isn't she?

So, of course, I was forced to shoot. Everyone was allowed to practice first, so I stayed by the practice targets. I didn't get a single arrow to land on any of the circles, not even the outer white part. I felt hopeless. I searched for my mother in the crowd. When I saw her, I aimed an arrow at her. I released and watched it sail about seven feet before landing in the grass.

"You're never gonna kill your mom with a shot like that," a voice said from behind me.

I whipped around and my face turned bright red. Standing in front of me, leaning on a railing and smirking, was Jon Devitch.

He came towards me, still smirking. "You have to raise up your arm more. And don't keep your hand so far away from your face." He stood behind me and turned me towards the practice targets. I could feel his warm breath on the back of my neck as he adjusted my positioning. I can't say that this helped the color of my face any.

"Now pull back….and…release." I watched as the arrow sailed farther than it had ever gone. In amazement, I heard a dull thud as the arrow made contact with the target: Bull's Eye.

"See how much better that is? You could really do some damage with a shot like that." He was still smirking. That's when I realized he was making fun of me. Instantly, my face went from bright red to flushed. I stomped away angrily without saying anything. Behind me, I could hear Jon laughing as he rejoined his friends. At that moment, the only thing I hated more than archery and my mother was that stupid, infuriating, beautiful boy.

Of course Jon won the competition. He had for the last several years. His mother said one time that he must have gotten the ability from his father because she was never any good at it. That was pretty much the only time I ever heard his father mentioned.

I didn't come close to winning anything, so right after the event ended I grabbed my bike and started off to meet my friends. We were going to the ice cream parlor on the other side of town. I started wheeling my bike in their direction, but before I could get very far someone stood in front of me, his hands holding onto my handlebars. Guess who it was?

"Let go of my bike," I warned.

"Or what? You'll use your bow and arrow skills to track me down?"

My glare must have been pretty frightening because it wiped the smirk right off his face. "Look," Jon explained, "I'm sorry about earlier. I was just trying to help."

"You have a funny way of helping people." I tried to turn my bike away, but he just held on tighter.

"Why are you so upset about it? It was just a little joke."

"I already know I'm bad at archery, okay? I don't need people like you to remind me."

He raised an eyebrow. "People like me?"

See what I mean? Infuriating. It would help if his eyebrows weren't so perfect. "Yes, people like you! You think you're so much better than everyone else just because you can shoot an arrow."

He stared at me, startled. "I don't think I'm better than anyone else."

Now it was my turn to smirk. "Sure, you don't." I yanked the handlebars hard, and he let go. I started towards my friends, and even though I didn't look back I could feel his eyes on me.

Despite what I had just done, I couldn't stop thinking about Jon Devitch for the rest of the day. I kept my eyes peeled for him, but I didn't see him again. That week I rode around town on my bike, but I didn't see him then either. In fact, I didn't see him for the rest of the summer. Finally, I asked one of my best friends, Lizzie, if she knew where he was. Her older brother was one of his good friends.

"He went to some summer camp, I think. His mom wanted him to go there. It's up in New York somewhere. Why do you ask?"

"Just wondering," I said. She gave me a raised eyebrow look, which told me she didn't really believe me. But it didn't matter. Jon was gone for the summer, which meant that no one would be by the archery range. I could practice for as long as I wanted.

I was sure of one thing: when Jon got back, I wouldn't be some stupid little twelve-year-old when he got back (partly because my birthday would take me to thirteen before the end of summer). No, I planned to teach myself archery. And when Jon got back, I would make sure he noticed.

**I hope you guys liked it! I would greatly appreciate your reviews, but I understand if you don't. I know there's a lack of demigodishness in this chapter, but I promise it's coming **


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi guys! Thank you to those who gave me reviews, I appreciate them greatly. I'm sorry for any grammar mistakes I made in the previous chapter or any I make in this one. I always forget to check over my work before publishing…so…yeah…sorry about that. Alright, it's time for me to stop rambling. Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

I didn't see Jon again until September. I was thirteen now, and I was in my last year at the local elementary school. Just one more year until I would be in high school. Some of my friends were dreading the transition, but I couldn't wait. It was the next big adventure on a long list I had created in my mind. I wanted to travel the world and see everything there was to see. I wanted to help people who were in trouble. I'd read a lot in the papers about a war that was happening in Europe at the time. It had started about a year before, September 1 to be exact, and many Jews were being held in places now called concentration camps. I wanted to help, even though there wasn't really anything I could do.

But I digress. Sure, that was one reason I wanted to go to high school. The other was Jon.

He was entering his junior year of high school at the age of fifteen. He should have been a sophomore, but because of how smart he was he had skipped a grade. This trait he got from his mother. Often times, she saw and noticed things that most people missed or simply overlooked. Anyway, he was really smart. He would be a senior when I was a freshman, but that didn't bother me. What bothered me most was how gorgeous he was. I mean, combine handsome, smart, athletic, and cocky in one person and you have Jon Devitch. I probably didn't stand a chance.

But I was determined. Every day I would make my way to the archery range, where I would practice for about an hour. I was steadily getting better, and I was able to hit targets from farther away. It was on a chilly day after school that I saw Jon.

I had just shot my first Bull's Eye of the day when I heard someone clapping slowly behind me. I turned around, and he was standing there, smiling at me and leaning up against the same railing as before on the day of the archery competition.

"Not bad. Not bad at all." He started toward me, and I lowered my arrow. "For a girl, anyway."

"You're back," I stated.

He held his arms out towards me. "Did you miss me?"

I rolled my eyes and ran towards the target. After retrieving my arrow, I walked back to him. I handed him my bow and the arrow. He looked at them. Then he looked at me. He raised an eyebrow and asked, "What's this for?"

I crossed my arms over my chest (which, thank God, had gotten slightly bigger over the summer) and asked, "Do you think you can do better?"

He smirked. "I know I can do better."

I walked over to the railing and leaned against it, watching him. "Prove it."

He laughed. "Well, if I'm proving something, we should at least make things interesting. Are you willing to make a bet?"

I looked at him suspiciously. "What kind of bet?"

"Simple. If I don't hit a Bull's Eye three times in a row, then I will leave you alone. You never have to see me again." He smirked again. "Unless you want to, of course."

I rolled my eyes again and asked, "And if_ you_ win?"

Another smirk. "You have to let me take you on a date."

Let me just mention that, at this point, I had only talked to Jon on two occasions. Sure, I had admired him from afar, and we had lived in the same town our entire lives. Sometimes I had thought he was looking at me, but I always assumed it was my imagination. Now, the boy of my dreams (cheesy, I know, but it's true) was asking me out on a date.

"If you can actually hit a Bull's Eye three times, without fail, then yes. You've got a deal."

He smirked at me one last time and turned towards the targets. Secretly, I was hoping with all of my heart that he would hit the target all three times. Of course, I couldn't let _him_ know that.

He notched his arrow. I think my heart skipped a beat. The arrow released and it flew straight towards the target. Bull's Eye.

He turned towards me. "One down, two to go."

I shook my head and rolled my eyes again. He smiled confidently and turned back towards the target. Another release. Another Bull's Eye.

At this point, I was pretty sure time had stopped. The only thing that mattered was that last arrow. My heart was beating so loudly that I was almost sure Jon could hear it, even though he was standing several feet away. His face was filled with concentration as he pulled back the arrow. He released it. I watched as the arrow sailed straight towards the target. It pierced the target directly in the middle and flew right through the back into the grassy meadow behind it. I stared in disbelief at the target. Partly because I couldn't believe Jon had used enough force to break the target; partly because I was in shock that I had a date with the cutest guy in town.

"You broke it," I said in amazement.

He just smiled. "But I got my date, didn't I?"

"You must have really wanted to win that bet."

"Yes I did, as a matter of fact. I'm Jon, by the way."

"I know. I'm Annie."

Jon took my hand and kissed the top of it. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Annie."

"I wish I could say the same."

He laughed and released my hand. "He leaned against the railing right next to me and said, "Well, whether you like it or not, I won that bet. So, I hope you like ice cream, because that's what you're getting."

"You sure do know how to show a girl a good time."

He laughed again. I loved the way his eyes crinkled up at the sides whenever he smiled. "You're funny, Annie. And who knows? You might just enjoy yourself on our little date."

I did enjoy myself. And I enjoyed myself even more on the one after that. Even more so on the one after that, where I received my first kiss from Jon. It wasn't long before we were spending almost every waking moment together. My mother didn't approve because of the scandal over Jon's birth, but she didn't approve of anything I did. Jon's mother was one of the nicest ladies I had ever met. She welcomed me into her home without a moment's hesitation.

In the summer of 1941, Jon left to go to his summer camp in New York. He didn't talk much about it, but I assumed he liked it well enough. Even though he wasn't with me in the summer, he wrote very often. We were young. We were in love. We were happy.

I should've known that our happiness wouldn't last forever.

**Sorry for the semi-cliffhanger, but I will hopefully update soonish. And once again, sorry for any grammar/spelling mistakes. I appreciate reviews! Thanks! **


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey guys, sorry it's been so long. I'm on stage crew at my school, so I've been really busy preparing for our upcoming musical. It's spring break though, so hopefully I'll be able to update more frequently. I'm not sure how many more chapters this will be, but I'll try to give you some good, quality updates. Here goes!**

There was only one week left before school started when Jon came back from his camp in New York. We spent all of our time together, which made both of us happy. But something was different about Jon. He wasn't as light-hearted and funny as he used to be. He was more serious. Occasionally, when he thought I wasn't looking at him, I would catch him staring off into the distance. At these times, I could see intense pain fill his eyes. I wanted to know what was wrong because I thought I could help him. Finally, I worked up the courage to ask him what was bothering him so much.

Jon sighed and shook his head. "It's nothing, Annie. I'm just thinking about the future."

"What about the future?"

He smiled and turned to me, pulling me into his arms. We were sitting under a large oak tree. Lying on the ground next to Jon, I could see the afternoon sun glinting through the green leaves. I looked up at the branches I'd climbed on as a child, ripping my dresses and getting dirt on my good shoes. The more my mother complained about it, the more I climbed. These days, I spent most of my time under the tree instead of in it.

Jon asked, "Where do you see us in a few years?"

Still looking up at the tree, I answered, "Well, you'll probably get a job somewhere. I might still be in college. A girl has to educate herself these days, you know."

"That's not what I meant. Do you think we'll still be together?"

"I should hope so. I don't plan on going anywhere."

He kissed me. His lips were cold, which was strange since it was such a warm day. I was just about to ask him if he was feeling all right when he asked, "Will you marry me?"

I stared at him. "I'm fourteen, Jon."

"And I'm sixteen."

"We're too young."

"So? I know plenty of people who get married when they're seniors."

"But seniors are usually seventeen or eighteen. And I'm only a freshman. Maybe in a few years, but I can't marry you right now."

"We might not have a few years!"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

He seemed flustered now. "You know there's a war going on in Europe?"

"So? What does that have to do with us getting married? America isn't involved in that war."

"Not yet, anyway."

I narrowed my eyes suspiciously. I didn't know what he meant by 'not yet.' Did he know something that even the President didn't know? I wasn't sure. I opened my mouth to ask him, but suddenly I saw something coming towards our tree that made my eyes widen in fear. "What is that?" I screamed.

Jon whipped around and released me from his arms. His eyes widened too and he pulled out a large sword. I had no idea where it had come from, but he was suddenly standing in front of me, facing the large creature in a protective stance.

I'm not sure how to describe it. It looked like something that came from a book I once read on ancient Greek mythology. It had fur all over its body and had the head of a bull. It stood on two hairy legs and seemed to have a human-like body. It lunged at Jon, but he was too quick. The monster ignored me, and Jon fought fiercely. His sword looked like it was made of bronze, and it shined in the sunlight. If it wasn't so terrifying, it would have been beautiful.

I closed my eyes. I must have fainted because when I next opened my eyes I was sitting on the couch in Jon's house and his mother was standing over me, a kindly expression on her face. I sat up and saw that Jon was also next to me, eating something that reminded me of my mother's homemade lemon squares. He had a nasty cut on his forearm, but it had been bandaged and cleaned.

Once I had regained control of myself, I asked, "What _was_ that thing?"

Jon just stared at me, looking horrified. His mother shot him a stern look and asked, "What did it look like to you, darling?"

I described what I had seen, and she shared a knowing glance with Jon. She listened patiently as I struggled to describe the terrifying monster. Jon, on the other hand seemed angry.

"That's just great," he said before stomping off into the next room. "Just my luck."

"Jon!" His mother called after him. "Get back in here right now. Annie deserves an explanation, and you are going to give one to her."

For a few moments nothing happened. Then Jon came back into the room, looking tired and resigned.

"Annie," he asked, "have you ever heard of a demigod?"

**I hope you guys like it! Sorry for the cliffy, but my laptop is about to run out of battery so I have to stop for now. Hopefully I'll update soon. Sorry for grammar/spelling. Reviews are greatly appreciated! **


	4. Chapter 4

**Next chappy! Thank you to those of you who reviewed!**

Jon was a demigod. His father was god. A _Greek_ god.

They were supposed to be myths, but they weren't. They are as real as you and I. And my boyfriend, my Jon, was the son of Apollo.

It explained the arrows at least. It told me why he was so good at archery, why he never failed to hit those 3 Bulls' Eyes on the day of our bet almost a year before.

Jon told me everything. He started by telling me how his parents had met when Apollo passed through town. Apparently, Jon's mother worked as a singer for a while, and Apollo was immediately attracted to her. She could also see through the Mist, which, Jon explained, was a kind of fog that kept regular mortals from seeing monsters and other strange things. Jon was terrified because I could see the Minotaur when he attacked. Jon realized that I could see through the Mist, too.

He told me about his camp in New York. It was called Camp Half-Blood, and there were even more people like Jon there. "They're my second family. I have brothers and sisters who are just like me and are going through the same things. They understand me. They know what I'm dealing with."

Truthfully, I don't know how I got through that night. Everything was swirling around in my head, and I couldn't find a way to organize it. Truthfully, I was scared. Not only for me and Jon, but for my family and the rest of my town, too. If Jon stayed, would the monsters keep attacking? Would my family and friends be in danger? If Jon left, would that make everything better? Would I be okay if he left?

Apparently, Jon was thinking along those same lines. He found me with Lizzie a few days later. School was going to start the next day and we were enjoying our last day of break at the creek. He came up beside me and asked Lizzie, "Do you mind if I steal Annie for a couple minutes?"

Lizzie giggled. "Take _all_ the time you need." She raised her eyebrows at me and giggled again. Apparently my get-togethers with Jon under our tree were the talk of the town.

He pulled me away and took my hands in his. "I have to go," he said quietly.

I knew it was coming, but I couldn't resist myself. Tears filled my eyes and threatened to spill over my eyelids. "When?" I asked.

"Tonight."

"Why so soon?" I heard my voice crack. Jon pulled me into his arms and rubbed my back soothingly as I cried into his chest. I didn't know if Lizzie was watching us or not, but, at that point, I didn't really care.

"If I leave, you'll be safe. The monsters won't attack you if I go. I can't let you or anyone else in this town get hurt. Not because of me."

"But what about us? What about our future?" It sounded whiny, even to me, but I had to ask. I had watched Jon from afar for years. I was not going to let him go this easily.

"Annie, look at me." I raised my head and looked into his eyes. At that moment, I knew I would remember those beautiful green eyes until the day I died. "I love you. I love you more than anyone I've ever met. You are _everything_ to me. One day we'll be together. I promise." He reached down into his pocket and pulled something out. He took my hand in his and slipped a plain, golden ring onto my finger. "Apollo gave my mother this ring before he left. Now it's yours. This ring is my promise to you. As long as you have it, know that I will always be with you. I will always come back to you."

Tears streamed down my face. I tried to say thank you. I tried to tell him how much I loved him. My mouth had gone dry, and I couldn't seem to form any words. It didn't matter, though, because Jon knew what I meant to say. He kissed me more passionately and more lovingly than he ever had before. In that single moment, a whole world of possibilities flashed before my eyes. I was wearing a white dress and walking down an aisle towards Jon. He was smiling. We were sitting on a blue porch and I was rocking a baby. Behind my closed eyelids I imagined a perfect life with Jon where we lived happily for the rest of our days. Even then, I knew that it was just a fantasy.

As Jon pulled away, he whispered, "I love you, Annie." He turned and began walking away as I stood there and watched him go. I was sobbing, and I felt Lizzie's arms go around me. She comforted me as I watched Jon turn around one last time and blow me a kiss. He smiled, but his green eyes were full of sadness. I blew a kiss back to him and he turned away. Soon, he had disappeared beyond the ridge.

That was the last time I ever saw Jon Devitch.


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey guys! You know what makes me really, really happy? REVIEWS! And do you know what I haven't gotten in the last two chapters? Reviews! This does not make me a very happy little demigod….I don't want to keep writing this story if no one is reading it. It isn't hard to click a button and write a couple words down. I don't care if it's constructive criticism or really nice. Any thoughts about the story at all would be much appreciated. Okay I'm done bitching now, so without further ado here is chapter 5!**

"Won't you at least_ consider_ him as a possibility?"

"No."

"Ugh! Why are you so selfish?"

"_I'm_ selfish?" I spun around quickly and faced my mother. When she saw the anger in my eyes, she took a step back. "How could you say that _I'm_ being selfish? _You_ are trying to force me to go on a date with the mayor's son when you already know that I'm in love with someone else!"

My mother rolled her eyes and shook her head in disbelief. "You are fourteen, Annie! You don't know what love is. _That_ boy-"

"His name is Jon!"

"-left you and moved to New York. It's been three months! How much time do you need to get over him?"

"Jon didn't leave me! He just had to go away for a little while. He's coming back. He promised."

"And you believe him?" She took a step towards me, but I just stepped away. She frowned at me. "That just shows how naïve you really are, Annie. He's probably out there in New York, running about with a different girl every night, and here you are, pining after him. Just give Thomas a chance. You might even enjoy yourself."

"I am not going on a date with that spoiled ass just to please you!" I'd never spoken like that to my mother before. Her mouth fell open in shock and I took that moment to turn around and run out the door.

I didn't stop running. I heard my mother screaming, "Annie! Anne! Get back here_ right now_! Annie!" Still, I never turned back.

At first I was just running to get away from my mother; from her words; from everything. I knew that Jon hadn't lied to me, and I knew that he had meant his promise when he made it. But what if my mother was right? What if Jon had forgotten about me? He was in the biggest city in America, and I was in a small town he had left behind.

Without realizing it, I was running towards the tree. _Our tree_, I thought to myself. I heard thunder rumble above me, but that didn't slow me down. I continued to run while all the bad thoughts I'd had since Jon left came flooding into my mind. I started to cry as wind whipped my hair around and the rain started to pour. My dress clung to my thighs. It was chilly and I hadn't grabbed a coat in my hurry to get away from my mother. I knew that I would probably be sick for days after this, but that didn't matter to me. I kept running.

I ran until I reached the tree. I stopped so suddenly that I slipped and fell in the mud at the base of the tree. I clung to the trunk and sobbed. It was the first time I had cried in three months, and it felt good to let my emotions be carried away on the wind. I reached for the golden ring hanging on a chain around my neck and held onto it. I might have stayed there for hours. It might have been only minutes. I probably would have stayed there until morning if I hadn't felt a hand on my shoulder.

"Art thou all right?" asked a kind voice.

I sat up and tried to wipe the tears away from my eyes. Then I realized it was raining, so my ace would be wet anyway. When I turned to look at the owner of the voice, I saw a beautiful girl staring down at me with a worried expression on her face. She was tall and she had a silver circlet braided into her dark hair. Her copper colored skin seemed to glow, despite the lack of sunshine.

"Art thou all right?" she repeated. She had a strange accent, and she spoke as if she was reading from a Shakespeare play. Annie was reading _Romeo and Juliet_ in school, and this girl sounded exactly like Juliet.

I tried to speak but I ended up choking on my words. The girl sat down next to me and pulled me closer to her. I leaned my head on her shoulder as she smoothed my hair. Eventually I stopped crying and the girl asked, "What is thy name?"

I sniffled. "Annie."

She smiled. "I am Zoë Nightshade."

**And that is chapter 5! I have chapter 6 written but I'm not gonna put it up until I get at LEAST 15 reviews. I already have nine so six more shouldn't be too difficult. PLEASE review! You would make a 15-year-old demigod very happy!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hello dearest friends! So I only got 14 reviews, but that's close enough to 15. I was going to go see Titanic in 3D today, but I got sick. So now I'm having a Doctor Who marathon! And later Avatar: the Last Airbender is having a marathon on Nicktoons! I am way to excited by this….but alas, I doubt you all care about the whims and fancies of my life. Therefore, I present chapter 6 for your pleasure and enjoyment!**

Despite the rain and thunder that muted most sounds, I clearly heard the call of a hunting horn in the distance. Within a few moments, my tree was surrounded by girls dressed in silver parkas and silver camouflage pants. In 1941, girls wearing pants in public was a rare sight, so I was slightly taken aback. I hadn't noticed before that Zoë was wearing a similar outfit to these other girls.

All of these girls seemed to be about my age. One girl, who looked to be about twelve or thirteen, stepped away from the rest and crouched down in front of me. "Hello. What is your name, dear?"

Usually, if someone younger than me called me "dear" or "sweetheart," I would be insulted. It was different with this girl, though. She radiated power and wisdom. I had no idea who she was, but I assumed she must be important. "My name is Annie. Who are you people?"

The girl in front of me frowned slightly. Instead of answering my question, she turned to Zoë and asked, "How did you find her?"

"My lady, she smelt like a demigod." **(I'm not sure if this is proper Old English, but I went with it.)**

"Demigod?" I asked. The auburn-haired girl who seemed to be the leader of these girls turned her attention to me once again. "Are you demigods, too?"

"My dear," she asked cautiously, "how do you know about demigods?"

"My boyfriend. Jon. He's a demigod, too. He's a son of Apollo."

A couple of the girls I hadn't met yet snickered. One said, "Your brother has been at it again, my lady."

"Hush, Phoebe," said the lead girl. She turned her attention back to me. "And did your demigod friend leave you here in the rain?"

"No. He's in New York. A monster came and attacked the town because he was here. He told me that he had to leave in order to protect me." My lip quivered as I held back a new set of tears.

"He's in New York?" asked the girl called Phoebe. She crossed her arms over her chest and scowled. "Probably at that filthy camp."

"Phoebe…" warned the girl in front of me. I still had yet to learn her name.

"It's true, my lady! That camp is filled with those disgusting…_boys_." Almost all of the girls nodded their heads in agreement.

For the first time, Zoë spoke up. She asked me, "When was the last time thou saw thy friend?"

"He left for New York about three months ago."

"And yet I can smell demigod on thy person."

The rain had slowed down and stopped without my notice during the course of this conversation. I took notice of this as I held up Jon's ring for all of them to see. "He gave me this before he left. And he also said I could see through the Mist."

The lead girl seemed to take great interest in Jon's ring. "May I see that for a moment?" she asked. I pulled the chain over my head and handed the necklace to her. She studied the ring for a while before she said, "I see. This ring belonged to my brother."

"Your brother?"

"Apollo. I am Artemis, Goddess of the Hunt." She handed the ring back to me. I said something very insightful, such as, "Oh..uh…oh."

Artemis smiled. "My brother likes to give his female conquests presents. Usually he gives his dreadful poems, but occasionally golden jewelry. Your friend Jon must love you very much if he gave something as precious as this to you."

For the first time in weeks, I smiled. Of course, Jon had told me that he loved me many times before, but I guess hearing it from a goddess just makes it a lot more special. "Thank you, my lady."

"I am curious about one thing, however. Why are you sitting here crying? A girl like you should be enjoying her young life, not sitting here by herself."

I sighed. "It's my mother. She wants me to forget about Jon. She thinks that he went to New York and found someone else."

"Jon Devitch?" A girl who I hadn't noticed before stepped away from the other girls. She had long blonde hair pulled into a delicate braid. I noticed the silver arrows sticking out of a quiver on her back. "Are you talking about Jon Devitch?"

"Yes! Do you know him? I haven't heard from him since he left!"

She frowned and tilted her head to one side, a confused expression plastered onto her face. "But he's written to you every day since he left."

"Ew!" Phoebe looked at the blonde girl with a scowl. "Rose, you _talked_ to him?"

"He looked so sad! Do you remember that Hermes boy who tried to replace our arrows with snakes when we stopped by camp last week? Jon is the one who got rid of them! He played his flute and all of the snakes just slithered away! He was actually very kind."

"Wait just a minute." Everyone turned to look at me. "I don't understand. I haven't heard from him in three months. He hasn't written anything to me!"

"Yes he has! But you never responded. That's why he was so sad." Rose studied my face. "He thought _you_ had forgotten about _him_."

I thought back over the last three months. There was a special place for the mail in my house. The mail man would put the letters in our mailbox. Then, my mother would go out to the mailbox and bring the mail inside. Every day I went through the letters, and every day I would be disappointed that there was nothing from Jon. I would have written to him, but I couldn't remember the correct address. Plus, my mother was always careful to hide the ink and paper so that I couldn't write. Then it dawned on me. _My mother_, I thought.

"_She_ has them," I growled through gritted teeth.

"Who?" asked Artemis.

"My mother. She must have taken the letters out of the mail. She stole my letters."

Rose said, "She must have really wanted to keep you two apart."

I couldn't believe it. I always knew that my mother didn't approve of my relationship with Jon, but I never thought she would go so far as to steal his letters from me. I felt betrayed, and I think I was more heartbroken than anything. I stood up and looked at Artemis. "What am I supposed to do now?"

"You could come with us, if you wanted to. We're always looking for more Hunters."

"You mean…you want me?" I'll admit, I was shocked. I had a few good friends at school, but I wasn't exactly popular. I was being offered a chance to run away from all of my problems. "What do I have to do?"

"Thou wouldst be immortal, unless thou suffered heroic death in battle. We could be thy family." Zoë smiled as she said this. "Thou wouldst have sisters and friends."

"That sounds wonderful!"

"But there is a bit of a catch," said Artemis. "All of my Hunters must take a vow of celibacy before joining me in the Hunt."

My face fell as I realized the meaning of her words. "You mean…I'd have to forget about him? I'd have to leave Jon? Forever?"

Artemis smiled sympathetically. "I know it's a hard decision to make. But what Zoë says is true. We would take care of you. You would have a family."

I looked at all the girls standing around me. They all smiled at me, even Phoebe. I brought my hand to the chain around my neck. I looked down and saw the golden ring, sitting there in my open palm. I looked at the tree. _Our tree_. Finally, I closed my eyes and bowed my head. My hand tightened into a fist around my ring.

"I can't," I said. "I can't leave Jon. I'm sorry." I opened my eyes and looked back up at the girls around me. Zoë looked crestfallen. Phoebe and some of the other Hunters just frowned. Artemis and Rose, however, smiled.

"I understand, Annie. Perhaps one day you will change your mind. Until then, take care. I wish you the best of luck in finding your Jon." She turned away and began running towards the edge of town. Many of the girls followed her. Rose gave me a quick smile before running after them. Soon, it was just Zoë and I standing beneath the tree.

Zoë opened her arms and hugged me. She whispered, "I do hope thou shalt change thy mind. Thou shalt always have a place among us." Then she turned and ran off in the direction of the other Hunters. Soon, her silver parka had disappeared from sight.

I knew I had let a golden opportunity pass me by, but I wasn't ready to give up yet. Jon had promised me that we would be together again, and I wasn't going to let go of that hope. I turned towards the direction of my house and began walking towards it. There was something I needed to do.

**I'm not super happy with this chapter. I re-read it, and it just feels a bit contrived. Sorry about that. I did check for grammar this time and I think I fixed all of my mistakes. Once again, sorry for the suckishness of this chapter. Hopefully the next will be better. Reviews make me smile! -Belle**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hello people of the fandom! How are you on this glorious day? Before I begin chapter 7, I have a couple of questions that I've been meaning to ask for a while:**

**1. What is a Mary-Sue? I've heard this referred to and I've got a pretty good idea of what it means, but I would like to be sure…**

**2. Does anyone know what the Beckendorf/Silena ship is called? Beckena? Silendorf? **

**So yea….if someone could tell me that would be most appreciated. Here's chapter 7!**

The door slammed behind me. Immediately I heard my mother's footsteps coming towards me through the house. _Get ready_, I thought.

My mother appeared. She had her hands on her hips and she looked livid. She opened her mouth, most likely to scream at me, but I raised my hand to stop her. Surprisingly, she closed her mouth.

"Where are they?" I whispered.

"Excuse me? Where are what? And how _dare_ you come back here without apologizing to me?"

I laughed. My mother looked at me like I was insane, but I didn't care. I was almost hysterical. "You want _me_ to apologize to _you_? For what? For cursing?" I stopped laughing. My mother said nothing. "Where are my letters, Mother?"

Her eyes widened in surprise. "What letters?" she asked. Her voice betrayed her and cracked.

My nostrils flared. "The letters that Jon has been sending me every day since he left for New York." I took a step towards her. "The letters that_ you_ have been keeping from me."

For a moment, my mother just stared at me, as if she didn't know who I was. Then, without speaking, she turned around and began walking towards her bedroom. I followed. She took a key off of her bedside table and opened a drawer. I stood behind her as she removed a bundle of letters bound together by a single red ribbon. I recognized the ribbon. I wore it in my hair every day for eight months. But I hadn't seen it in four years. In fact, I remembered telling my mother that I was too old to wear hair ribbons. I couldn't believe that she had kept it all this time.

She handed me the letters without a word. I untied the ribbon. There were at least 80 letters in the bundle. Some of the envelopes were small, others big. I stared at them. Slowly, I raised my head and looked at my mother.

She wouldn't meet my eyes. Instead, she stared at the ground and whispered, "I did it to protect you."

"PROTECT ME?" She flinched at my raised voice. Never before had I seen my mother show any sort of weakness, especially towards me. She liked to have everything carefully planned out. She liked being in control. Before I came home, she had probably imagined several different scenarios in her mind of how she would dominate this conversation. She thought that I would crumble to her will. She never imagined that this would happen.

"Look. At. Me." My mother finally met my eyes. I didn't see fear, but I saw worry. She looked at me as if I were an animal that had broken loose from its cage. "For three months, you watched me search for these letters. You heard me cry myself to sleep every night because I thought that Jon didn't care about me. Now you say that you were trying to _protect_ me? The only thing that was hurting me was _you_!"

"Annie, I'm sorry. I thought it was for the best."

I shook my head in disbelief. Tears started to pour down my cheeks. "How could you possibly think that this was for the best? Mama, I love him!"

"Annie, you're fourteen!" She had started to cry, too. "You don't know what love is! He's so far away. When is the last time you saw Lizzie?" I actually saw Lizzie at school every day, but the last time I actually spent time with her outside of school was more than two weeks ago. "You don't spend time with your friends anymore. All you do is sit around and wait for him to come home. I thought, maybe if you believed that he had given up on you, perhaps you would be able to move on with the rest of your life. You could stop dwelling on the past."

"You don't understand. I can't move on." For the second time that day, I pulled the chain over my head. I held the ring out for my mother to see. "Do you see this ring?"

She came forward to get a better look at it. "Where did you get this, Annie?" she asked in wonder.

"Jon gave it to me the day he left. It's the only thing he has that belonged to his father. It was his promise to me. This is his promise that he will always be with me. He's not going to give up on me, Mama. And I'm not going to give up on him." My mother tore her gaze away from the ring. For the first time, she seemed to see the real me standing in front of her. She saw how serious I was. She saw how in love I was. And she immediately knew that nothing would be able to stop me from loving him. No amount of force could keep us apart. My age didn't matter.

When you love someone, it's real. You can't ignore it, and you can't push it away. You have to accept it for what it is. You have to embrace it. I don't know what made my mother change her mind, but from that day on, she supported me. I heard rumors from Lizzie that a group of nosy women were gossiping about my strange relationship with Jon. Apparently, my mother overheard them and said very matter-of-factly that instead of gossiping about children half their age they should "mind their own damn business." I asked her about it, but, of course, she "would _never_ do something like _that_ in a public place." For years my mother and I had been at each other's throats. Now we would laugh and talk for hours about the silliest things. Occasionally, she would ask me about Jon (I was writing to him as often as possible in those days) and we would talk about him for a while.

In December 1941, Pearl Harbor was bombed by the Japanese. We declared war on the Japanese, and soon Germany and Italy had declared war on America. The last letter I ever received from Jon told me that he was going to join the army. They sent him to North Africa to fight the Germans. After that, I never heard from him. Occasionally, his mother would receive a letter from him and part of it would be written to me. I was terrified that he would get hurt over there. I don't think I would have gotten through that year without my mother.

Before I knew it, it was the summer of 1943. My grades were spectacular, and I had skipped a grade, just like Jon. At the age of sixteen, I was going to become a senior.

I missed Jon terribly. I hadn't seen him in two years, and, even though I loved receiving an occasional letter, they didn't replace him. There was an empty place inside of me that longed to see his face.

Sometimes I thought about that night in 1941 when the Hunters found me. I never told anyone about it, not even my mother. Lizzie was still my best friend, but I couldn't bring myself to tell her about it. Even Jon's mother, who already knew about demigods and the Hunters, didn't know that I had met them. I thought about how different my life would have been if I had gone with them then. I never would have made peace with my mother. I wouldn't have been able to see Lizzie and Ms. Devitch before I left. I wouldn't have been able to say my final goodbyes to Jon.

Two days before the beginning of senior year, I was sitting on the porch of Jon's house with his mother and mine. We were drinking tea and eating cookies outside because it was such a beautiful afternoon. It had been weeks since Jon had sent a letter. We didn't know anything about where he was or what he was doing.

That day had started out perfectly. I had spent the entire morning with Lizzie. We wouldn't be in the same classes next year because she was still a junior, but we planned to see each other as often as possible. We were excited for the adventures that this next year would bring. We wanted to spend every moment together before I went off to college. A perfect day. The sun was shining, and the birds chirped happily. But my perfect day shattered when I saw the Western Union man.

He was walking down the street. I was facing him, so I was the first to see him. Immediately I felt sick to my stomach. I stood up so suddenly that my chair fell backwards. My mother stood up too and rushed over to me. She turned and saw the man. He was still coming down the street towards us.

Ms. Devitch didn't stand up. She continued to sit, but she gripped the arms of her chair and her knuckles were white. We all watched as he looked at the numbers on the houses, trying to find the correct address. I could see the telegram in his left hand.

_Please walk past. Please walk past. Please walk past_, I thought to myself. My fear petrified me as I watched him walk closer and closer. He didn't stop moving. He was only one house away. For a moment, he looked confused, as if he wasn't sure which house to give the telegram to.

But then he looked up and saw me staring at him. His face filled with sadness as he started walking towards me.

**And that is chapter 7. For those of you who may be unfamiliar with the Western Union men, during wars such as Vietnam or the World Wars, they were the ones who delivered telegrams telling mothers, wives, and children that their sons, husbands, or fathers had died in the war. I think you all know what that means… **

**I would really appreciate some reviews. I liked this chapter a lot better than the last one. There are probably only going to be 2 more before the end of the story. Enjoy the rest of your day/evening! Sorry if I made anyone sad.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Have any of you seen the movie How o Train Your Dragon? I just finished watching it for the millionth time. If Annabeth and Percy were made into cartoons, I am convinced that they would be Astrid and Hiccup. Askmfhgnbarvuhkjshhsl I love them so much! :D**

**All right enough of that now. I wasn't going to update today because my friend got her license and we were gonna drive around town, but apparently her boyfriend takes precedence over me…So I stayed home and watched cartoon movies! I have such a lovely social life. So from my lonely singleness you get a new chapter! Yay!**

They never found his body.

According to the telegram, there was an explosion. I didn't know too much about it, and, truthfully, I didn't want to.All I needed to know was that Jon was dead. Jon was never coming home. I would never see him again.

Since there was no body to bury, we held a memorial service instead. My mother, who was still the head of the fundraising committee for the town, raised enough money to erect a statue in the park. In honor of Jon's incredible archery skills, the statue was a golden target. There was a small hole in the middle of the target, just big enough for an arrow to sail straight through it. This, of course, was in memory of the day he first took me out on a date. For years to come, the annual archery competition would be held right next to Jon's statue.

While other men from our town had volunteered and joined the army, no one else died yet. In fact, Jon was the only person who died during the war. That's why his memorial service was such a big deal for everyone. He represented something bigger than just one person. To most of the people in our town, he was all of the Americans fighting in the war. But not to me. To me, he was just Jon.

The memorial was held one month after the telegram came. Folding chairs were set up in the park, and the golden target statue was placed on a pedestal in front of us. It would remain there for as long as the town existed.

The entire town came out for the service. It was mid-September, but, thankfully, it wasn't too cold outside. I sat in the front row between my mother and Ms. Devitch. I wore a simple, knee length black dress. My hair was curled and tied back with a black ribbon. Jon's ring hung around my neck on a black chain. I turned around in my chair to see if I recognized anyone in the crowd. Lizzie was sitting a few rows behind me, and when she saw me looking at her, she smiled sadly. I continued to look around, and every time I made eye contact with someone they gave me the same, sad smile.

In the distance I could see my tree, standing as tall and proud as ever. I smiled, thinking about the days I had spent under that tree with Jon. Suddenly I noticed something strange. I narrowed my eyes. Standing under my tree was a man. He had sandy-colored hair, but other than that, I couldn't make out much.

At first glance, I truly believed that I was seeing Jon. The man seemed to be staring right at me. He looked as if he was about to walk towards us, but something else caught his attention. He turned slightly, and I noticed a girl walking towards him. She stood under the tree next to him and looked towards me. She was dressed in silver.

I turned back towards the statue as the service began. The pastor of our church opened up his Bible and began to read, but I don't remember what he said. Throughout the service, I could hear Ms. Devitch and my mother crying on either side of me, but I didn't shed a single tear. I watched as they placed a golden plaque in front of the statue. Soon after that, the service ended and people began to go home. Some came over to hug Ms. Devitch and me before they left. By that time, everyone knew that Jon and I had intended to be married as soon as he came back from the war. Now that would never happen.

Lizzie came over to me. She hugged me tightly, and as I looked over her shoulder I saw the two people standing by the tree. I knew immediately that the girl in silver was Artemis. She had come back for me. She nodded in my direction, as if reading my mind.

"Lizzie, there's something I have to tell you," I said. I explained to her that I was leaving town. I didn't tell her about the Hunters, but I told her that it might be hard for me to see her again. Thankfully, she didn't ask any questions.

"Will you write?"

"I'll try, but I don't know if I'll be able to get to any paper. You're the best friend I could ever ask for, Lizzie. I'll miss you."

She hugged me again. "I'll miss you, too, Annie. I love you." She released me and walked away.

_Great_, I thought. _Now I just have to explain this to my mother._ I turned back towards the statue where I thought my mother was waiting with Ms. Devitch. Instead, I saw the man from earlier standing in front of it and staring down at the plaque. I walked over and stood next to him. The plaque read: _In memory of JON DEVITCH; loving son and friend_. Underneath, it had the dates of his birth and his presumed death date. As I read the plaque, I said to the man, "You look just like him, you know."

From the corner of my eye I saw him smile. "So I've heard. Are you Annie, then?"

I nodded. "And you're Apollo?" He looked like he was eighteen, but I knew that gods could change their appearance. After all, I had met Artemis, and she looked like a twelve-year-old girl.

"I found his body," Apollo said abruptly. He turned to look at me. "I'm sorry. I just thought you'd want to know for sure. He's gone, but he died heroically in battle. He'll definitely go to Elysium."

I searched through my knowledge of Greek mythology. "Does that mean he'll be reincarnated?"

"If he chooses to be. He could stay in Elysium forever, but if he wants to be reborn three times he has a chance of making it to the Isles of the Blessed."

"He'll probably try for that. He always was an over-achiever."

Apollo cracked a smile but didn't say anything. Eventually, he shook his head and sighed. "Do you think he hated me?" he asked me.

I shook my head. "No, I don't think he hated you. At least, not for the reason you might think. The only reason he might be angry with you would be for leaving his mom the way you did."

"I couldn't stay. Gods and mortals, even special mortals who can see through the mist, don't work well together. The problem is, we can't resist. We fall in love, but we can't stay. It's tough to be a god."

"It's tough to be a mortal, too."

He was quiet after that. Then, finally, he noticed what was hanging around my neck. He pointed to it and asked, "Is that my ring?"

I brought a hand to it. "Yes. Jon gave it to me before he left."

Apollo nodded. "Good. I'm glad he gave it to someone he cared about."

Soon after that, I saw my mother standing a little ways from us. She was with Ms. Devitch, who was staring at Apollo as if he were a ghost. I suppose, in a way, he was. She came over to talk to him while I went to talk to my mother.

My mom smiled at me. "How are you doing, sweetie?"

"I'm okay." I took a deep breath. "Mama, there's something I need to-"

She held up a hand to stop me. 'I already know. Ms. Devitch explained everything. I just have one question: will you be safe?"

"I think so."

She hugged me. "I am going to miss you so much, Annie. Will I ever see you again?"

"I hope so, Mama." She let go of me and I saw tears in her eyes. She wiped them away quickly. "I love you."

"And I love you, Annie. I hope this is what's best for you."

"It is, Mama. It really is."

I watched her and Ms. Devitch walk in the direction of my house. I wasn't worried about my mom; she was strong, and she would take care of herself and Ms. Devitch. I knew she'd be all right.

Apollo came over and said goodbye to me. He left, and then I was the only person in the park. That is, until several girls all dressed in silver came out from behind the various trees. Zoe came over and gave me a huge hug.

"I knew thou wouldst join us soon. I am glad thou hast changed thy mind." She let go and Artemis came forward. She had with her a bundle of silver clothing and a quiver full of silver arrows.

She smiled and asked, "Are you ready to become a Hunter, Annie?" I looked around at all of the other girls. They all wore huge, excited smiles on their faces. That's when I knew that I could be one of them. I knew that I would be okay. I knew that this was what was truly best for me.

"Yeah." I took the clothes and arrows. "I'm ready."

**I hope you guys liked this chapter. There's just one more left and then the story shall be completed. Please review! ~Belle**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hey guys! This is the last chapter of this story, but it's more of an epilogue. I just want to thank everyone who read and/or reviewed this story because you make my life happy :). I'm probably going to start another story soon which will, hopefully, be a lot better than this one. I don't know for sure what it'll be about, but it's most likely going to be a Percabeth. We'll see what happens.**

**And now without further ado, I present to you the final chapter of **_**The Story of a Hunter**_**!**

I could feel the changes as soon as I stepped foot into the town. The houses looked more modern and most of the shops I had known as a little kid were gone and replaced. As I walked down the street in my silver Hunter outfit, I couldn't believe how much my little town had grown.

The park was the same as always, but there was now a playground made of plastic rising up near the creek. Just beyond the playground I could see a mass of people gathered around a casket. That was where I was headed.

Lizzie was 81 when she died. She ended up marrying a boy who was four years older than us, and they had three children. One of them, the oldest girl, was named Annie. As I walked towards the funeral party, I could see small children running around. I smiled. Lizzie always wanted to be a grandmother.

The funeral began and everyone sat down. I stood under a tree that was about 20 feet behind the last row of chairs. As I leaned against the tree, I realized that it was_ my_ tree. I shook my head in disbelief. Some things have a way of turning up again and again in our lives.

As the priest talked about Lizzie and the wonderful life she had, I thought about my past. Six days ago, the day that Lizzie died, I went to visit her in the hospital. She looked frail and old, and I was afraid that if she saw me she might not recognize me. Instead, when she opened her eyes and saw me sitting next to her bed, she smiled and said, "No fair. How come I don't look like that anymore?" I laughed and we talked for a while. She probably thought that I was an angel or a ghost, but that didn't matter to me. I was able to see my best friend one last time before she left.

I had seen my mother right before she died, too. She died over 20 years ago, but she held on to see me. Ms. Devitch, who had moved to Chicago with my mom after Jon's memorial service, told me that she knew I was coming and wouldn't leave the earth until she said goodbye to me.

The funeral was over before I knew it, and people began to get up and walk around. I walked away before anyone could notice me. Lizzie's children might recognize me from the pictures they had showing me with their mother, and I didn't want to take a chance of that.

As I was leaving the park, something flashed in the corner of my eye. I turned around and saw the sun reflecting off a golden archery target. For a moment, I stared at it. Then I felt a hand on my shoulder.

"Did you say goodbye to your friend?" Thalia asked patiently. After Zoë died in the winter of 2006, Thalia became the new lieutenant of Artemis. We had met her before then, but she hadn't joined the Hunters. She had been in love with a boy named Luke, and she told us that she couldn't leave him. The other Hunters didn't understand. But I did.

"Yeah," I told her, "but there's something I need to do first." She nodded in understanding and ran off towards the trees where the other Hunters were waiting for me. I began walking towards the statue.

It looked exactly the same as it did in 1943, 65 years ago. The shine had dulled a little, but it was still beautiful. When I stood about thirty feet away from it, I stopped. As usual, my bow appeared in my hands and I pulled out a single silver arrow from the quiver on my back. I kissed the golden ring hanging around my neck for good luck and notched the arrow.

I narrowed my eyes. I could just make out the tiny hole in the center of the target. As I pulled back and released the arrow, I watched it fly straight. My heart pounded against my chest as the arrow sailed through the hole and out the back of the target.

I smiled. _Bull's Eye_.


End file.
